The Rescue
by Xelac
Summary: Sequel to The Red Sphere. Chell is captured by Black Mesa. With her 2 kids vulnerable, GLaDOS takes advantage of the situation. However, stubbornness runs in the family.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Okay, I admit it. The last chapter of The Red Sphere was the worst ending I have ever written. In fact, it's the only ending I have ever written. There was going to be more to it, but I decided against it and didn't think of anything good to replace it. So, this first chapter will probably end up being mostly a filler to explain some things from the end of The Red Sphere.**

**Also, I know that I said I would write this after ASHEaDE was finished, but I think my writer's block that I unsuccessfully tried to solve with something ridiculous is actually being caused by simply not feeling like writing what I should be writing. **

**Anyway, bring on the boring intro!**

Chell's POV:

Chell stared absentmindedly at the cube she had set down beside her bed. She had found out that GLaDOS could monitor her through the Companion Cube, and had done so for a while, until Chell buried it in the deepest darkest corner of her closet. Of course, her closet wasn't that big, so there weren't actually any deep or dark corners, so the cube had just been hidden beneath an old blanket.

Two months ago, GLaDOS had told Chell's two teenage kids that if there was ever a time they could visit the Enrichment Centre, she would tell them through the cube. But Chell knew better than that. While GLaDOS had been sweet-talking the kids, she had been complaining to Chell about them.

"They have no discipline, do they?" the AI once said after the incident with the Red Sphere, "Yes, I'm glad that they have more of an appreciation for science than you ever had, but at this rate they'll grow up to be dangerous lunatics just like you. And I thought the world could only handle one."

Glade and Alex would never be allowed back in the Enrichment Centre. Whatever she told them, GLaDOS was infuriated by what they did, and frankly Chell was surprised she had let them off so lightly. She would only let them come back if she could test them… And of course Chell would never let _that_ happen.

Anyway, at least some good has happened since that incident. For some reason, they weren't questioned too much about their weeklong disappearance or their fresh scars. More importantly, Glade had been accepted into a school for scientifically gifted teens that Alex was too young for. There was, however, one little thing that was wrong about it…

Wheatley's POV:

Wheatley sped along a crude management rail through the halls of Black Mesa Academy of Sciences. At first he had been glad that he was rescued from space after floating there for years, until he found out who's space ship had picked him up. They were infuriated when they found out their rival, Aperture, was up and running after all these years, and had tried to torture information out of him. They soon realized Wheatley didn't know anything that was actually important about Aperture, and couldn't get anything at all out of Space, so true to their nature they claimed they had built the two of them. Wheatley felt even more ashamed about this than he did about almost blowing up the facility, but he had no choice. It was pretend along with them, or die.

He got stuck on his management rail for the fourteenth time that day, and after a minute of struggling was finally able to continue on to… Frankly he didn't really have a particular destination in mind. Flipping Black Mesa… They couldn't even make a proper management rail.

Most of the students had left the school, which was a relief since he hated the whole lot of them. Yes, none of them were that bad, other than the fact that they associate with Black Mesa, but still. It was embarrassing for an Aperture personality construct to be showed off to a bunch of kids as a Black Mesa product.

However, Wheatley did spot a student wandering around, looking lost. He chuckled to himself, thinking that she must be one of the first years. They were always getting lost in this huge school (it was huge, but of course it wasn't nearly as big as Aperture!). Some even found their way into the Black Mesa facility, where they would get into serious trouble since that's where they carry out the experiments that they don't want the rest of the world to know about.

Wheatley slid along his rusty rail, planning on taunting the first year on getting lost. However, as he got closer, there seemed to be something familiar about her. He picked up speed, and eventually began calling out.

"Hey! HEY! It's me! I'm back from spa- Oh, 'ello," as he got closer he halted when he realized it wasn't _her_. Wheatley mentally kicked himself; of course it wasn't her. This school was for 16 to 18 year olds, and the mute test subject was surely too old for it. "I-I'm sorry, I mistook you for someone else," he stammered.

The girl, who seemed to be about 16, flicked her black hair out of her blue-grey eyes. "That's alright, I guess," she replied, examining Wheatley closely.

_She certainly looks like her though,_ Wheatley thought, examining her just as closely. "Are you lost? You look kind of lost. You know, most of the kids have left by now…" he said.

She laughed embarrassedly. "Yeah, I guess I am."

"I can take you to the front door," he offered. He didn't know why he was being so nice to a Black Mesa student. Perhaps it was because she seemed so much like that test subject. "You know," he began as they started off together, "You look a lot like someone I know. I guess you already figured that out, but…"

"Yeah, I kind of figured," she replied, "Although, the only person anyone has ever said that I looked like was my mom."

Wheatley twitched a little at that comment. "Umm… Well, people do tend to… to look like people they've descended from…" he mumbled, "So, uh, how do you like the school?" _Please hate it, please hate it, please hate it!_

"I, uh, guess it's okay. Just a little boring with all the lectures on safety," she replied.

"Ha, yeah, where I come from safety's not that important at all," he said casually.

"Huh? I thought you were built by Black Mesa."

Wheatley froze. "I, um, I, err, come from a different Black Mesa facility…"

They had told him that if he ever said he was from Aperture, they would kill him. The even rubbed off the Aperture logo on his side.

Glade's POV:

Glade narrowed her eyes at the bot shifting nervously above her on the management rail. He looked rather worn-down, like he'd been around for several years longer than Black Mesa had claimed him to be. Not only that, but Black Mesa never announced that they were studying artificial intelligence until all of the sudden they announce that they've created an AI and it's all they can think about.

Further, when he slid up to her she could have sworn he was about to say that he was back from space, and said that where he came from safety wasn't important. And it wasn't like his design didn't scream Aperture all over the place. Glade, even though she was the pyro of the family, still knew a thing or two about robots from her bot-obsessed brother.

"You weren't made by BM, were you?" she whispered.

"WHAT? What-uh, what would make you say that?" the core asked nervously, even though the look in his optic seemed a little hopeful.

"Were you actually built by Aperture?" she asked, making sure to keep her voice down.

"I, well, I, uh, y-yes, but _don't tell anyone_! They'll kill me if they knew anyone else knew," he whispered seriously. She nodded. "Okay. So, uh, how'd you figure it out?"

"Well…" she began, "Since I'm keeping a promise for you, can you keep a promise for me?"

"Of course," Wheatley replied.

"My mom… Was a test subject from Aperture," Glade whispered.

"OH MY GOD THAT'S HER!" he suddenly yelled, making Glade jump back.

"Wha-? Did you know my mom from back then?" she asked.

"Yeah…" he answered quietly, a sudden look of guilt coming to his optic, "Yeah, I knew her. Don't tell her, though… Oh look, here's the door."

They had indeed finally come to the school's front door.

"Err… Thanks for helping me out," Glade muttered.

"Yup," Wheatley replied, "Hey, what's your name?"

"Gladys, or Glade for short," she replied.

"Gladys, wow, that sounds like…"

"GLaDOS?"

"Yeah… Oh, my name's Wheatley by the way. I guess I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure," and with that Glade left, wondering how she would hide her excitement from her sharp-sighted mother.

Wheatley's POV:

Wheatley turned around and slid back the way he came, glad that something good had finally happened to him since being shot into space. He had a new friend who knew that test subject that he knew from long ago… maybe he'd even get a chance to apologize…

"Hello, Wheatley," came a cold voice. Wheatley stopped as he realized he was face-to-face with the manager of this Black Mesa facility, Dr. Ater.

"Oh… 'Ello, boss," he stammered in reply.

"I see that you've met one of our students," Dr. Ater continued calmly.

"Yes, a, um, lovely girl she is…"

"And you've uncovered some information." Wheatley didn't like the tone of his voice.

"Oh? What-what sort of information?" the core dared to ask.

"A new source of information on our old rivals."

If Wheatley could faint from utter despair, he would have.

**A/N: Wow, this turned out a bit better than I thought. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Do I go too fast in this chapter?**

Glade's POV:

Glade stood off to the side of the lobby area where the mass of students were mingling, waiting for the first bell to send them to their first class. She heard a scraping sound, and turned to see Wheatley approaching, muttering once again about the rusty management rail he had to put up with.

"C-can we talk someplace private?" he asked, his optic quivering a bit as he eyed the other students, and more importantly, the professors.

"Sure," she replied, wondering why the core acted so nervous. She followed him away from the lobby and the gaggle of students down a dimly lit hallway. He slowly turned to face her again, his optic still shaking and the blue light much smaller than usual.

"Look, um, our… our last conversation wasn't as private as we thought it was," Wheatley began, refusing to look the girl in the eye.

"What's going on?" Glade asked suspiciously.

"Uhhh… Oi, I really messed up this time…" he stalled, backing away a bit, "They know!" he suddenly blurted after a pause, "They know about your mum!"

"What?"

"Black Mesa knows your mother was a test subject from Aperture," he whispered, "And they're gonna go after her!"

"What do you mean, they're gonna go after her?" Glade asked, getting a little scared as she glanced around to make sure they were still alone.

"Exactly what I said!" he nearly yelled, before remembering to keep his voice down, "They'll capture her, and try to use her to get more info on Aperture," he explained in a whisper, "Look, you've got to go home immediately, get your mum, and run! I don't know where, but you need to get away from here!" His optic was merely a pinprick of blue and shaking violently.

"You mean… Go back to Aperture?"

"Wait, how close is Aperture?"

"Just out in the wheat field…" Glade explained.

"That close?" Wheatley asked distractedly, "That's a little ironic, isn't it? I thought I ended up _miles_ away… That's not the point! If you can get in there without being killed, yeah, maybe that's the best place to go."

They both jerked when they heard footsteps echo in the hallway, and barely relaxed when they faded.

"You got to go," Wheatley whispered again, "Down the hallway is a door to the outside. Uhh, good luck, maybe?"

Glade backed slowly down the hallway before turning and sprinting.

Chell's POV:

"Mom!"

Chell jumped when she heard Glade's voice. Wasn't she was supposed to be at school?

Glade ran into the room. "B-… Black… Mes…" she panted, trying to catch her breath after apparently running all the way here. Chell put her hand on her shoulder, meaning 'slow down, take a moment to catch your breath first'.

After a few minutes, Glade was finally able to straighten up and speak. "Black Mesa knows you're from Aperture, and Wheatley said they're coming…" her voice trailed off when her mother suddenly jerked back at that name, her expression hardening. Glade awkwardly tried to explain how they met, and what was going on.

Chell always had a bad feeling about Black Mesa. She thought it was just because of all the anti-Black Mesa propaganda in Aperture. Besides, BM had glorified themselves by taking all the credit for saving the world from the alien apocalypse, even though they had started it in the first place, and because of that, they were allowed to drive every other science company out of business and monopolize all research in America. If Glade, Alex, or anyone else wanted to get anywhere in any science field, they would have to go through BM, whether they wanted to or not.

She turned away from her daughter, trying to think of yet another elaborate escape plan, when there was a pounding on the front door. They both whirled around, and could see through a window a white van with Black Mesa's logo on the side. The pounding came again, harsher. She glanced between the window and Glade.

If they both tried to run, they would surely both be seen, chased, and possibly captured. Making a split-second decision, she ran to her room, grabbed the Companion Cube, and ran back, shoving it into Glade's arms.

'Just go,' she mouthed, ripping the back door open. Glade just gave her a confused, scared look. Chell managed a forced smile. 'I've escaped from worse than this. Just run, get your brother, and wait for me at Aperture.'

"But-" Glade protested. Chell pushed her out the door.

'Just wait for me! I'll get out of this.'

She shut the door behind Glade, locking it for good measure. The pounding had become a rhythmic banging; making it obvious they were resorting to breaking down the door. She turned toward the front door as it splintered and broke.

A guy dressed in a lab coat with Black Mesa's logo on the right-hand corner led a group of armed guards into the house. She noticed one of the guards wasn't holding a real gun; but a tranquilizer gun that they use on animals at the zoo.

"Ma'am, if you just come quietly…" the scientist suggested in a sneering voice as the guard raised the tranquilizer gun.

_POP!_

Nothingness.

Glade's POV:

Glade ran from the house with the Companion Cube in hand, not daring to look back. Could her mother really get herself out of this on her own, like she had at Aperture?

She finally slowed as she approached the middle school her brother, Alex, went to. Luckily, the students were still gathered in the courtyard, so she'd be able to grab him without anyone noticing. She placed the cube out of sight from the courtyard.

"What're you doing here?" Alex asked, annoyed, as his older sister dragged him from his friends, "Aren't you supposed to be at your own school?"

"We gotta go," she replied in a taut voice. Hearing his sister's urgency, he stopped struggling and followed her to where she hid the cube.

"What's going on? We could get in trouble for this," Alex warned as they walked down the street, away from the school.

Suddenly, Glade pulled him around a corner and behind a building as a car with Black Mesa's logo drove by, unusually slowly and with the people inside obviously looking out for something.

"They must be looking for us," Glade muttered.

"Why? 'Cause you're skipping school?" Alex asked, getting suspicious.

"No, 'cause we know about Aperture, their rival."

"What?"

Glade took a deep breath. "You know that AI they built? The sphere with the blue eye? They didn't build him at all. He came from Aperture." She proceeded to explain the rest of the story.

"And mom told us to wait at Aperture until she escapes?" Alex asked.

"Yeah," his sister confirmed.

They were once again walking, and were close to the wheat field. Once they had walked a ways into it, they set the cube down.

"GLaDOS?" Glade called, tapping one of the hearts on its charred surface, "Hello?" No response.

"Didn't she say there was a camera in there?" Alex asked, examining the Companion Cube.

"Yeah, but she never told us how to get her attention…" Glade muttered. _Maybe she didn't want us to,_ she thought.

"Hey!" Alex said, knocking on it like it was door. There was still no response.

Finally Glade stood up and just kicked it over.

"There was no need to be violent," the kids breathed a sigh of relief at the sound of the AI's voice, but were taken aback by its unexpected malice. "Then again, you probably get it from your mother."

One of the circles on which the hearts were painted on slid over, and a small camera stuck out of the cube. It seemed to be glaring at them as GLaDOS continued, "The side with the camera was on the ground, idiots."

The two were taken aback by her words. She's never been that harsh to them before. The camera flicked impatiently between the two.

"Well? Is there a good reason for you to demand my attention so violently?"

At that point, the siblings began yelling at once.

"There was this core-"

"Black Mesa found out about us-"

"He said he was from Aperture-"

"And my sister abducts me from my school-"

"They were pounding on the door-"

"ENOUGH!" GLaDOS cut them off, "Tell me, ONE AT A TIME, what's going on."

The siblings glared at each other, both trying to get the other to explain it. Finally, Glade explained the story, feeling even more awkward than when she had to tell her mother.

"So, that moron isn't as far away as I thought… And he's _still_ causing trouble…" GLaDOS mused, mostly to herself.

"This isn't about him," Glade pointed out exasperatedly, "Our mother was just _kidnapped_-"

"Yes, yes, I know," the AI said dismissively, "That is a problem… She told you to hide in MY facility while she expects to be able to escape on her own?"

The teens nodded.

"She has guts, I'll give her that much. Then again, she _is_ a lunatic," GLaDOS went on like they were discussing the weather.

"GLaDOS…" Glade muttered, getting really annoyed at how little the AI was caring.

GLaDOS's POV:

No Aperture Science associate who had been sucked into any Black Mesa facility had managed to get out alive without the aid of a squad of armed androids. What made that lunatic think she was any different? She wasn't going to get out on her own.

GLaDOS just watched as the children shifted uncomfortably in front of the Companion Cube's camera. With their mother in such a situation, they looked like lost sheep. And they didn't know nearly as much about Black Mesa as she did.

Although things could get very disastrous very quickly if Chell gave them all the information she knew, the chance her giving in was still slim. GLaDOS knew she would stubbornly keep her mouth shut until they killed her, which was much more likely. This could open up new possibilities concerning her offspring.

The disaster Glade and Alex caused nearly mirrored the disaster their mother caused. Trying to test them could cause problems in two ways: They escape and cause another disaster, or even worse, their mother comes to the rescue.

But.

With their mother gone, that's one less lunatic to worry about, not to mention the children would be too devastated to fight back.

After all, it wasn't like Chell didn't set this up herself. She told them to wait with GLaDOS until she could escape Black Mesa, but since that wasn't going to happen, she just granted the AI custody.

"Alright," GLaDOS told the two kids, "You'd better get over here, quickly."

They nodded, glad that she was finally helping them, and picked up the cube as they set off toward the Enrichment Centre's entrance.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Well, it's about time this got updated, isn't it? I'll start out by replying to Forte. I want to see that chapter, Forte, and maybe it'll end up in Average Life. It's not like **_**I'm **_**going to be writing anything for that anytime soon, other than a closer.**

Chell's POV:

"I'm going to ask you again, Miss," the Black Mesa scientist said in a sickly sweet voice, "What do you know about Aperture Laboratories?"

He was answered by nothing but another stubborn glare. They were in a cement room that was bare other than the metal table separating them, a dim light hanging from the ceiling, and the chair Chell was restrained to. Her right hand only had enough space to reach a pencil and a piece of paper on the table.

The scientist sighed with mock regret and gestured to a guard that was standing in the shadows near the door. He approached her, casually pulling out some sort of taser. It had the general shape of a gun, with a long metal rod instead of a barrel that was attached to a black box with a trigger. She locked eyes with the guard as he approached, not showing fear but hatred, and braced herself.

Once the pain passed, her eyesight cleared and she was able to compose herself as if nothing happened. The only difference it made was that there was yet another burn mark on her shoulder, along with several other burns and tiny red dots that showed where they had injected her with… Well, she didn't even want to know.

"We're still searching for your children," the scientist said casually, "Have you ever thought about them while you're refusing to tell us anything? Do you know the benefits we could give them if you help us?"

She did know, but if it weren't for this, they would have been perfectly capable of getting them themselves.

"Not to mention," he went on in a quieter tone, "If, no, _when_ we find them and you still refuse to talk, they'll be in the _exact_ same position as you." He paused to let it sink in. "What good mother would want that? Don't you want to protect them? …I'll let you think about it."

He and the guard left, locking the door behind them. Chell silently laughed. If they haven't found them, they must be where she told them to go. And if she ratted out Aperture, it would be their lives on the operation table, no doubt. They might already _be_ on the operation table…

GLaDOS's POV:

Glade and Alex were luckily less trouble than expected. For the next few days they spent at the Enrichment Centre, they were quiet from the shock of what just happened, and didn't do much other than wander around the facility, occasionally tinkering with broken, useless equipment just to pass time. GLaDOS planned to postpone testing them until she was sure she had them under control; destructiveness was in their blood, after all.

The plan was simple. She knew that there was no way Chell would be able to escape the Black Mesa facility, and would probably be dead within the week. GLaDOS planned to take her time; nurturing the children's hopes that their mother would come back for them, until the time was right to break the news that she was dead. Then it would be easy to make them think she was all they had left. Then she would be free to test two humans who she could count on to survive the tests and yet not want to murder her.

Of course, even though she deleted Caroline, there still seemed to be some file in the back of her mind that she just couldn't get rid of; that kept pecking at her saying _this isn't right. Let them go, help their mother_. But it wasn't like the science she was trying to accomplish could be completed with that sort of thinking, right? …Right?

_Of course it can't_, she scolded herself, forcing down the file. She turned her attention to her former test subject's oldest offspring, Gladys, or Glade for short. GLaDOS usually kept things formal by either calling something its full name or, in the case of most test subjects, not calling them by name at all, but Glade's name was an exception. _Gladys._ Why did that lunatic have to name her that, of all things? It made the AI feel… awkward, and she didn't even know her emotion processors could generate awkwardness.

The teen was lying on her back on the bed in one of the cryogenic chambers that had been set aside for her and her brother, staring blankly at the ceiling. She shifted her eyes to the camera on the wall in front of her.

"Hey, GLaDOS?" she said in a quiet voice.

"Yes?"

"You know a lot about Black Mesa, don't you?"

_More than you would ever want to know. If you knew what I do, you'd be panicking._ "Yes, I do," the AI replied after a pause.

The girl sighed, and avoided looking directly at the camera. "Do you… really think she'll be able to escape on her own?" Glade asked softly.

That file was pecking at GLaDOS's mind again. _Tell her the truth._ She decided to try to delete it again, or at try to dull its effects by burying it under other files that were just as worthless but didn't fill her emotion processors with useless feelings as soon as possible. But whatever the file was doing to her, she had to keep up the pretense.

"Of course she can," the AI replied casually, "She escaped _me_, didn't she? And I can outsmart any scientist Black Mesa has."

Glade chuckled a bit, showing that GLaDOS had succeeded. When that girl falls, she'll fall hard…

_Then don't let her fall_, the file seemed to say as it fluttered back from the corners of her mind and attempted to flood her processors with regret.

_Shut up_, GLaDOS thought to herself, ignoring the emotion and burying the file again.

A week passed, with no sign of Chell. GLaDOS was sure Black Mesa had killed her former test subject by now, but she planned to wait a bit longer before finally breaking it to the children. So far, she had kept their hopes up and convinced them that, no matter what happens, she'll be there for them. In a way, that was true, since they'll probably never leave the Enrichment Centre now. If only that file would just go away and stop fluttering around her head…

_She might still be alive, if they're desperate for information. You know what she's going through. You should help her._

_What good would that do?_ GLaDOS thought, _She'll keep quiet about Aperture until her last breath. Besides, she owes me. I've saved her life twice now, and how has she repaid me? By expecting me to babysit for her? Then again, by doing that she did give two potentially good test subjects…_

However, for the last few days Glade had been acting, well, odd. She seemed anxious and impatient, which GLaDOS brushed off as being due to the situation her mother was in. After all, Alex's actions were similar. But she seemed to be more restless; pacing around, drumming her fingers when she was sitting, staring off into the distance, and not listening to GLaDOS the first time she said anything. It was awfully similar to the way her mother behaved when she was on the brink of finding the missing link in solving a test.

Wait-

What if she was planning something? Glade was smart for a human her age, and her impulsive nature was surely genetic. GLaDOS turned her attention to the girl, who was leaning against a wall with her arms crossed, staring into space again. He brother was by the corrupted core bin; examining a corrupted core that had somehow managed to turn itself on and was shouting something about pie and the number pi. In a test chamber, ATLAS had lost control while running on propulsion gel and had ended up slamming into the wall, severely damaging his legs. Idiotic robots…

She looked back at Glade, who had already left the place where she was last seen. GLaDOS searched for her, spreading her attention over the section of the Enrichment Centre she and her brother had been designated to. She wasn't there. Mind racing, she looked further, even into the run-down areas of the facility.

There she was, sprinting through the plant covered hallways toward the elevator that she and her brother had first entered the facility through in the abandoned Aperture building.

"Glade, you don't know what you're doing," GLaDOS warned, "Come back. I'm not angry… yet."

Glade just shot her the same, silent glare her mother did long ago and kept going. She was nearing the elevator. That area had been out of use for so long, GLaDOS could barely control it. It could take hours to get the elevator to cooperate.

"Gladys, get back here immediately!" she nearly yelled through the old, crackling speakers, "You won't save anyone! You're only endangering us!"

GLaDOS wasn't lying about that. The main thing that changed between 17 years ago and two months ago is that now Chell had a major weakness. She could stand up to anything Black Mesa threw at her, but if they captured Glade, she would surely break.

Regardless, Glade reached the elevator and left the facility.

GLaDOS immediately began to create a seal around a section of the facility and led Alex and the testing robots into it, making sure that none of them could get out.

"Your sister is in trouble. _Serious_ trouble," she told the confused 13-year-old, "I'm leaving to bring her back."

"But… How can you leave?" he asked, knowing she was a massive robot that hangs from the ceiling.

"I already have that figured out," she said impatiently, making preparations for her departure, "Orange, Blue, keep the human company while I'm gone."

The two robots saluted and nodded dutifully. She rolled her optic, not even wanting to know where they picked that up.

She knew that the only way to move among humans and remain unnoticed was to look like a human, and recently she had created the perfect android for the job.

And if Chell _was_ still alive… Well, maybe helping her out wasn't such a bad idea. After all, the AI did know her weaknesses.

Her impulsive, stubborn, reckless, 16- and 13-year-old weaknesses.

**A/N: OH MY GOSH IT SNOWED. IN EARLY DECEMBER. IN ARKANSAS.**

**Anyway, this didn't go quite as far as I thought it would, but I think this would be a good place to leave off. Hopefully the next chapter will be out by, you know, the end of the month. **


	4. Chapter 4

Glade's POV:

Glade sneaked along the back of the Black Mesa facility, hoping she'd find an inconspicuous way in that wouldn't trigger any alarms that there might be. She found a rusty door that was opened by pushing on a lever that ran horizontally on its front, which was unlike the other high-security doors she'd seen so far. She adjusted the small backpack that was slung over one shoulder and cautiously approached it. The pack contained only a few weapons that she dared to bring-a few homemade explosives, of course, a lighter, a small bottle with some flammable chemicals in it, and a pocketknife her mother had given her.

She was about to open the door when a familiar voice came from close behind her.

"You really don't know what you're getting into, do you?"

Glade spun around at the sound of GLaDOS's voice, expecting to see an android or a cube with legs and a camera sticking out of it. However, what she saw looked like a normal woman. She had long, light blond hair that was tucked neatly behind her ears and wore plain black clothing. She crossed her arms and fixed Glade with a disapproving glare with her light brown eyes. After a few seconds, however, the natural-looking brown color seemed to melt away to reveal dark yellow optics instead of eyes.

"Wh-… What are you doing here?" Glade stammered uncertainly.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" GLaDOS countered, "Your mother did tell you to stay in the facility."

"But if we don't do something, she might…" the girl trailed off, looking back at the door, "She might be dying in there…"

GLaDOS's arms dropped to her sides and she took a step closer to the girl. "She's spent a week at Black Mesa's mercy," she said firmly, "She's probably already dead."

Glade glared at her. "She wouldn't die that easily."

"Of course not," the AI replied with a chuckle, "But Black Mesa's harsh. If she didn't tell them what they wanted to know, which she hopefully didn't, they'd have just disposed of her."

Glade backed toward the door. "She might still be alive."

"It's doubtful-"

"We should at least check!" Glade yelled fiercely, "If she's alive, we help her, if she's dead, we get revenge!"

With that, she spun around and pelted through the door. She ran through the corridors of the facility, thankful that she never ran into anyone, since she seemed to be in an unimportant maintenance area. She heard the android chasing her and, worried that she was able to run faster than a normal human, took as many turns as she could and hoped that she wasn't entirely used to that body.

Luckily, she seemed to be right, since after running for as long as she could, Glade had lost her. She took a short break and tried to figure out where she was and where she was trying to go. She did what most would do when trying to find something and having no idea where to go: She began to wander aimlessly around.

This part of the BM facility seemed to be completely empty, since she didn't run into anyone except a janitor who was fast asleep in a supply closet, and obviously hadn't been in use for quite a while. The dark metal walls had patches of rust covering them, the concrete floor was dirty, and the florescent lights hanging from the ceiling were either flickering or completely out. There were also scorch marks on the walls, making Glade think that there must have been a fire here, and maybe no one was around because no one bothered to repair the damage.

After about 20 useless minutes of wandering, she seemed to finally be nearing the more used areas of the facility, considering that the hallways and rooms, though still empty, were at least cleaner.

She sighed with disappointment when, after entering a random room, she found it to be a dead end. However, there was a map on the wall for a fire escape rout, so she decided it wasn't completely useless. The room looked like one of the labs in the school section of the facility, with white walls, rows of tables with sinks equipped in them and assorted vials and beakers filled with various substances scattered around. She approached the map, which was faded slightly, began to try to decipher it.

Of course, she didn't find any sections called "Prison" or "Interrogation Rooms". She wondered if they might have put her mother with the test subjects, but there were two separate sections for them, one labeled "A" and the other labeled "H", which isn't anywhere close to alphabetical. She checked the map for sections B through G when she heard footsteps and voices approaching in the hallway. In a panic, she dove into a cabinet under a table, breaking several vials in the process, as someone entered the room she was in.

"No results from your test subject?" came a slightly teasing young male voice.

"As unyielding as ever," came an annoyed reply from an older male.

"Look, all you have to do is break her," advised the first voice as the glass of a beaker clinked, "Then she should spill the beans on _them_."

"I've tried that. Several times. That woman won't break like the others," the second voice said exasperatedly while liquid poured into a nearby sink, "I told you, we need leverage for this one. She has children. Have they found them yet?"

"Nope, not a trace of them."

"Where could they have possibly gone? It's not like they have any other family to go to."

"_There_, probably."

"Hmm."

Glade's heart had pounded so loud that she was surprised they never heard her. She heard the door close and stayed hidden for what felt like eternity after their footsteps receded. Her mind raced over what the men said, and felt certain that she knew what they meant.

Her mother was alive.

They've been trying to "break" her.

They were looking for Glade and Alex.

They figured they were at Aperture Science.

Glade climbed slowly out of the cabinet, making sure that the room was empty. She realized the glass from the broken beakers had cut her arms, and blood had stained the light blue shirt and jeans she was wearing. She had never forgotten the days she spent in Aperture's medical wing, shivering even though she was burning up, after she had developed a severe fever due to an infected gash on her arm, and ever since then she had been more cautious about cuts. She found some white cloth in another cabinet and quickly bound her wounds before going back to the map on the wall.

The only sections for test subjects were "A" and "H". Glade figured that if she went to one and found that it wasn't the one she was looking for she could just go to the other, so she ripped the map off the wall, folded it, and tucked it into her pocket.

She cracked open the door and peered outside, making sure she was alone. The coast clear, she set out at a rapid pace for Test Subject Section A.

She traveled towards the more used, internal parts of the facility, the concrete floors turning to grey tile and metal walls to stone brick walls painted white. She had to hide from more and more people, and spent a lot of time curled up in cabinets and closets, hoping to not be discovered. Deciding that she couldn't waste more time, she entered an empty room and used a desk as a step stool to climb into the air vent.

After crawling through the metal tunnels as quietly as possible, Glade noticed a flaw in her plan. She had no idea where she was going; the map, of course, didn't show the ventilation system. She stopped over a grate and peered into the room below. She couldn't see anyone, but there was another map on the wall that she could use to figure out where she was. She carefully removed the grate and jumped down onto the desk below.

"Gladys?"

Glade's blood froze as she spun around toward the sound of a familiar voice. A young man of about 19 sat in front of a desk covered with several beakers, one containing a boiling red substance, and a clipboard in his hand. He had neat brown hair, dark eyes, and wore a white lab coat that was too big for him over a blue dress shirt and black slacks. Glade relaxed slightly. He was Jacob, the attractive young assistant in Professor Amet's Health and Safety class. He made the excruciatingly boring class enjoyable by yawning loudly and openly criticizing Amet's boring teaching tactics. He was liked and respected by almost every student, and even stood up for some of them when they got into trouble. Glade felt she could trust him.

"What're you doing here?" Jacob asked, setting his clipboard down and standing up, "You and your family have been missing for a week!"

"I… I'm looking for my mom," Glade stammered in reply.

He shook his head. "I haven't heard of her since the three of you disappeared. Where have you been?"

"I _know_ she's here," she insisted, avoiding the question, "I saw the Black Mesa guys come to our house to take her. When I got here, I heard some guys talking about her, calling her a test subject and saying they have to break her."

"I haven't heard of anything like that happening here," Jacob said, his eyes widening.

"If she's a test subject, I'm heading for one of the test subject holding sections. Section A," Glade explained. Jacob cracked a smile.

"Unless your mom's a rabbit, you won't find her there. A's for animals," he explained, "The people who volunteer for experiments go to Section H."

Glade's eyes narrowed. "My mom didn't volunteer. I'm starting to wonder how many of those other people actually volunteered."

Jacob shrugged. "They always told me they volunteered."

Of course they told him that. He was a nice guy, and would have told the police if he knew Black Mesa was doing that.

"You're shaking," he said, giving her a concerned look. He pulled a water bottle out of a cabinet. "Here, have a drink. It tastes metallic 'cause of the filters, but there's nothing wrong with it."

Glade accepted the water and took a long drink. Jacob walked up to the map on the wall.

"I thought that the higher-ups were keeping some things from me, but if what you said is true, who knows what else is going on here," he commented, "Se the grey lines on the map? Those are maintenance hallways. The doors say "Authorized Personnel Only", since they lead to the control panels of the big machines, but they aren't locked. You should be able to reach Test Subject Section H without running into anyone through them. Keep the water."

"Thanks," Glade replied, glad that he understood and taking another drink. She pulled out her own map to see where the nearest entrance to the maintenance hallways was, and peered out the door to make sure no one was around. The coast was clear, and with a final nod to Jacob, she set out again.

Jacob watched her go. A minute after she left, he pulled out a radio.

"Yep, I found her," he said smugly into it, "She has the water and is heading for the maintenance hallways. Over and out!"

"I've told you a thousand times that you don't have to say 'over and out'," came an annoyed reply.

"Chill out, Dr. Ater," Jacob said, turning the radio off.

Glade sprinted down the maintenance hallways. Jacob was right; the place was empty. Once again, the walls were metal and the floors were concrete, but it was much cleaner. The florescent lights, however, were dim and far between, making it dark and hard to see the map. She was getting close to the Section H when an alarm suddenly went off.

"Intruders spotted heading towards Test Subject Holding Section H, please remain calm," came a pleasant female voice over the intercom.

Very close to Section H, Glade burst out of the maintenance hallways and into the main hallways. She came to a four way crossroads, and panicked for a second when she saw someone in the middle of it, but relaxed when she realized it was GLaDOS.

"I certainly hope you've realized the danger you've put both of us, and Aperture, in," the android said with calm fury when she approached.

"She's alive, and we're close to where they're holding her. If we can just get there-" Glade began.

"The flaw that both you and your mother share is that you never think ahead," GLaDOS interrupted, "What do you plan on doing once you get there? How do you plan to get past _them_?"

She gestured to two of the hallways of the crossroads. A squad of guards was racing down each of them. The ways out were the way Glade had just come from and the other led away from Section H.

"We may have to split up," the AI said quietly, slipping a smaller version of a single portal device to the girl, "Find an empty room, fire a portal, go through it and close it immediately."

"What? But-" Glade stuttered in confusion.

"If they get you, they can use you as leverage. Believe me, if they hurt you, your mother _will_ talk," she explained, "And an advanced android can do a lot more than a teenage girl. Go!"

Glade was shoved toward an empty hallway, and GLaDOS sprinted down the other.

Without thinking, Glade raced forward and ducked into the first room she came to. Firing a portal on the wall, she jumped through it into the familiar bowels of Aperture. She spun around and shot a portal on the wall again, shutting off the connection to the Black Mesa facility. She was safe.

But she couldn't relax. She stood shakily, still staring at the two portals. What about GLaDOS?


	5. Chapter 5

GLaDOS's POV:

GLaDOS sprinted through the hallways of the Black Mesa facility at a speed of about 2.5 times faster than a human can run and the guards had fallen well behind. The entire facility was mapped out in detail in her head, and she probably could've escaped to safety with her optics closed.

Unfortunately, she didn't expect that the hallway in front of her would flood with guards and that she wouldn't be able to slow down before crashing into them and sending herself, and them, tumbling head over heels. She reoriented herself as soon as she came to a stop, but before she could get up a taser was jammed into her side. Electricity flooded her, and error messages filled her vision before she blacked out.

GLaDOS came to exactly 7.14159 minutes later. She detected multiple humans around her, two of which were dragging her between them. With neither fight nor flight an option, she kept her head down pretending to still be unconscious. They were taking her down a hallway with a concrete floor and the familiar sounds of humans in despair and an electrical hum were all around her. After a few seconds, the guards stopped, and she could hear someone typing into a keypad. The hum off to the side quieted and a metal door opened.

"You've got company," came a gruff voice. Suddenly, she was thrown to her right.

She sprang to her feet as soon as she hit the ground, surprising her captors, who quickly closed a metal door. The hum started again as an electrical field appeared over the bars that made up the front side of the cell. The floor and the walls were all made of reinforced concrete, and there were blood stains-some old, some new-covering the dirty floor. Across the hall, behind another set of bars and an electrical field, two pairs of watery eyes stared back at her. So this is how Black Mesa keeps its test subjects. She heard a shifting sound to her right, and turned to find that she was not the only occupant of this cell.

Chell sat on the bottom bunk of two bunk beds, staring at her curiously and obviously not recognizing her in this human-like android form. To remedy this, GLaDOS let her optics show themselves and said in her usual calm tone, "Well, I didn't expect to see you alive again."

Chell jumped to her feet, but a few seconds later had to sink back onto the bed. GLaDOS took a step closer to assess the damage on her former test subject. She was pale, _very_ pale, and seemed to be constantly shaking. Her arms were dotted with burn marks from tasers and red dots from injector needles, not to mention the cuts and bruises on every other part of her. Her hair hanged loosely over her shoulders and obscured half her face.

"Have you told them anything?" GLaDOS asked. Chell shook her head. "In that case, I'm surprised you're still alive. I'd been trying to figure out how to break it to your offspring that you weren't coming back."

Chell looked up at her. 'Are they safe?' she mouthed.

The android shrugged. "If your daughter followed my orders, she should have escaped."

'You let her come here?' she mouthed angrily, trying to stand up again.

GLaDOS grabbed her shoulders and forced her back down. "She escaped and came here on her own accord. I left to get her back, and if it weren't for me, she'd be the one sitting here with you," she hissed.

Footsteps. They both spun around towards the cell door as a man in a white lab coat flanked by armed guards walked up to it. He calmly typed something on the keypad and opened the door after the electric field disappeared.

"I can see that you two have been acquainted," he said in a disgustingly cheerful voice as he stepped inside, his eyes flicking between them, "Do you enjoy your new residence?" he asked GLaDOS.

"It could be a bit cleaner," she replied, keeping her tone even and locking eyes with him.

"Your roommate never complained," he said with a smirk, glancing at Chell, who tensed. She obviously was familiar with him. He turned back to GLaDOS. "Tell me, miss, have you ever heard of Aperture Laboratories?"

She didn't let any emotion show as she said, "Nothing other than it shut down centuries ago."

"That is what we used to believe," the so-called scientist replied, "But we recently encountered evidence that it's still running, and that stunt you pulled earlier with a certain teenage girl gives us reason to believe that you know this as well."

GLaDOS's eyes narrowed. "What evidence?"

He waved his hand dismissively. "A little core from space," he replied.

Chell jerked, and the AI glanced back at her.

"I see you know who I mean," he said with a smile, "Well, I'll let you two sit tight for a second while I prepare for our next… conversation."

With a gesture to his guards, they trooped off, leaving their victims in silence.

Glade's POV:

Glade leaned against a wall, staring at the clean white wall across from her. Her brother sat beside her on her right, leaning against her shoulder like he did when he was little. The robots called Orange and Blue sat on either side of them, trying to mimic their positions.

"At least we know she's alive," Alex whispered.

Glade glanced back at her younger brother. "Maybe," she replied grimly, "But it's been three hours and there's still no sign of GLaDOS. Do you think she…?"

Alex shrugged. "You know, it's not exactly like her to let you escape and get herself captured."

"I know, but she said that if they got me, they could use me to make mom talk, and that she could do a lot more than I could," Glade replied.

They sat in silence for a while, the robots looking at them concernedly. Glade wondered for a second if they truly understood what was going on.

"Oh yeah! I wanted to show you something!" Alex suddenly said excitedly, jumping up, "I've been working on something since we came here!"

He grabbed his sister's hand and hauled her to her feet before taking off down a hallway, the robots curiously following him. Knowing her brother, Glade figured it was a miniature version of one of the robots that danced when you pressed a button.

"I found this thingy that said how they made simple AIs like the turrets," he explained breathlessly as they ran toward his room, "So I made something like that but put it in my own robot."

"Really?" Glade asked, wincing at the memory of what happened when she built a core. She didn't even make the AI part and it still went corrupt.

They entered the offline cryogenic chamber that Alex was assigned to. He crouched down next to his bed and pulled a box out from under it. Glade raised an eyebrow as he gently set it on the bed and removed the top, revealing a scorpion-like robot inside. Its body and tail were both two feet long, and its tail ended in a metal barb. Its body was segmented and made out of a dark metal. Coming out of each side were four legs that ended with two small hooks, and two pincers that were each at least six inches long and four wide at the base. On its head were two closed optics.

"Hey," Alex said, tapping its head, "Wake up!"

Its optics opened and turned on, each glowing red. It looked around the room, eyeing everyone curiously and making a few chirping noises.

"I call him Scorpio!" Alex said proudly.

"A scorpion named Scorpio," Glade said, chuckling, "Very original."

"I couldn't think of anything else," he replied dismissively, "Look, he can climb up walls and stuff! Go on, show her!"

The scorpion obediently climbed out of his box and scurried down the bed with ease. Glade instinctively jumped out of his way as he crawled past with his barbed tail held above him. He paused in front of the wall before jumping onto it and climbing up and onto the ceiling, making Orange duck to avoid his tail. He stopped on the center of the ceiling and looked down at them with a smug look in his optics.

"I also put a taser in his tail so he can shock stuff," he went on, "Whoa, you don't have to show us that right now!" he told his scorpion, who was preparing to stab someone with his tail.

Scorpio climbed down from the ceiling and climbed up Alex's back, who laughed, petting his head.

Glade smiled; glad her brother had something to distract him from this mess. She slowly reached out to pat the scorpion's head as well. "I'm glad you're better with robots than I am. I'll just keep to my firecrackers."

"Hey, you know that if I tried to make a firecracker, it would either sizzle or blow up at exactly the wrong time," Alex replied. Then his face darkened. "How long should we wait for her?"

Glade sighed. "I don't know. She might be trying to do something there, which is why she's not back yet."

"You think she's trying to help mom?" her brother asked.

"I hope so," she replied, "I guess if she's not back by tomorrow… I guess we should go back there and help."

"Yeah," he said softly.

The robots suddenly started chirping and gesturing.

"I think they wanna help," Alex said smiling, who had been around them a lot more than Glade. They nodded excitedly.

"I guess it's settled then," Glade said, "If she's not back by tomorrow, the four of us-"

"And Scorpio," Alex interrupted.

"Alright, he can come. The five of us will set out for Black Mesa," she concluded.


	6. Chapter 6

Wheatley's POV:

Wheatley sped along the rail, once again hopelessly lost. He hadn't seen the Space core in a while, and as much as he hated listening to him rave about space, he was the only other piece of Aperture equipment in this entire bloody facility, so he wandered off to look for him.

The rail led to the entrance of a hallway he had never seen before, and above the heavy metal door was a hole perfectly sized to fit him that the rail ran through. Suspicious that Black Mesa had something planned for him, he carefully maneuvered through the hole.

Wheatley was one of the few cores with olfactory sensors, and once he entered the hallway said sensors were assaulted by the smells of blood, disease, and chemicals. On either side of the hallway was a row of prison-like cells with bars that hummed with an electrical field. The humans in the cells closest to him drew away from him in alarm, eyes wide with fear.

"Um, 'ello…" he said uncertainly, trying to not scare them.

He proceeded down the hallway, keeping himself from looking too closely in any given cell for fear of what he might see. The smell was bad enough. Okay, so a core can't vomit, but still.

A voice dripping with hatred made him freeze.

"Well. If it isn't the moron who caused all of this. How have you been?"

Wheatley slowly turned to his right. An android that looked almost exactly like a human except for her glowing gold optics glared back at him.

"Wha- What the bloody h*** are you doing here?" he nearly yelled, retreating a bit.

GLaDOS's optics just narrowed further. "What do you think?" she jerked her head to the side, "I came to help _her_, of course." She turned back to him, "It was you, wasn't it? How else would they have found out about us?"

"It-it wasn't my fault!" he protested loudly, "They just picked me up out of space-"

"Keep your voice down!" she hissed, turning toward the side of the cell with an almost concerned look before glaring at him once again, "That's not entirely what I meant. How did they find out about her?"

He turned toward the corner of the cell. The test subject from 17 years ago lay, apparently unconscious, shivering on the bottom bunk of a bunk bed.

"I-I didn't mean to give her away," he stammered in a quieter voice, "I just talked to her daughter-did you know she has a daughter?"

She gave a brisk nod. "She also has a son, both of whom should be safe in my facility. That is, if they have the sense to stay there. You know," she went on in a more upbeat voice, "You're very lucky that there is an electric field between us. Otherwise, you'd be the immediate past president of the Surviving In Black Mesa Club. However, considering the fact that most of the damage you've done so far since you nearly blew up my facility has been done to my poor little test subject over there, I'll let her deal with you when she's ready."

GLaDOS gave him a long, steady look. "We _will_ get out of here," she said slowly, "And when we do, I'm taking _you_ with us. Is that clear?"

Nodding rapidly, Wheatley sped out of that gruesome hallway as fast as the rail would let him.

GLaDOS's POV:

GLaDOS watched his retreat with a smirk. She heard a shifting sound from the side of the cell and walked back to her former test subject.

Chell was lying on her side, locked in a fetal position. She opened her eyes as GLaDOS approached.

'Was someone there?' she mouthed blurrily.

"Its nothing that concerns you," the AI replied smoothly, "Go back to sleep."

Her eyes closed again, and her body relaxed a bit. It wasn't long after their last conversation with a Black Mesa scientist that they decided to try to figure out what sort of relationship GLaDOS and Chell had. They did this by tormenting Chell with tasers to gauge GLaDOS's reaction.

GLaDOS knew very well that Chell could take it, and Chell knew very well GLaDOS wouldn't do anything. Thus, GLaDOS looked on with a bored expression and Chell completely ignored her.

When they gave up and left, GLaDOS waited for a bit in case they were being watched. Then, she pulled her former test subject off the floor and onto her bed.

For all the fat jokes she had thrown at her, now she was alarmingly underweight…

Since then she had been mostly unconscious. Night had set outside, and from the lack of guards she had seen, GLaDOS figured they'd be left alone for the rest of it.

_It wasn't so long ago when you were ready to just let her die._

_Oh. It's you,_ GLaDOS thought in reply, _Why can't you stay deleted like you belong?_

_You can't delete your conscience, _the file answered in a singsong voice.

_Like I need a conscience,_ she scoffed in reply.

_It's not like you have a choice. Just look at her._

_What about her?_ She glanced down at her former test subject. She seemed so vulnerable now, lying motionless on the bed.

_You don't want her to die anymore, do you?_ The file asked.

_Black Mesa must be desperate for information if they're keeping her this long, _the AI reasoned, _We now know that getting her out will benefit Aperture._

A soft tsk, tsk came from the mysterious file. She once again tried to delete it, but the usual error message claiming that there wasn't a file there to delete came up again. But, there _must_ be a file. She could feel its data forcing its way into her mind.

_I don't have time for this,_ she growled in her mind, _why don't you just waddle back to the corner of my head so we can both be at peace?_

_Of course you don't have time for this,_ was the matter-of-fact reply; _you've got a girl to take care of._

And with that GLaDOS felt its presence leave her mind. With a sigh, she jumped up to the top bunk and lay there, pretending to be asleep, and listened to her companion's irregular breathing.

She went over her mental map of Black Mesa's facility, figuring out at least 20 quick escape routs. The metal bars and electrical field may be fool proof to contain a human, but not Aperture's most advanced AI. There must be a loophole; she just has to find it.

The next morning, after two scientists and a group of guards trooped into their cell, she found it. This time, one of the scientists and half the guards led her away while the others stayed with Chell.

They didn't care that GLaDOS had watched closely when they typed in the code to relock the cell door. A human wouldn't have been able to decipher the code or remember it afterwards. But she could.

She had anticipated while she was building this android that she would have to fight. That's why the android was designed to be stronger and faster than a human and a knife-like blade could extend from the palm of its hand.

_This is going to be fun,_ she thought, hiding a chuckle.

Once they were in the interrogation room and a guard had locked the door, they were doomed. GLaDOS quickly and mercilessly dispatched them and slipped out of the room, relocking the door behind her. Next was the simple task of retrieving her former test subject and escaping.

As she raced down the corridors, carefully avoiding people, she suddenly heard robotic chirping behind her.

_You've got to be kidding me,_ she thought angrily, slowing to a stop and turning around. Just as she did so, she was nearly knocked down by two overly affectionate robots. Blue and Orange beeped happily, both trying to hug her at once.

"Get _off_!" she nearly yelled, shoving them away, "What the h*** are you doing here?"

The testing robots looked at her with hurt expressions. She rolled her optics; that never worked in testing and it would not work now.

"Um, hey, GLaDOS," came Glade's voice. She and her brother were with the robots. She was holding one of her homemade bombs in her hand and Alex had some sort of robotic scorpion riding on his back and peeping over his shoulder.

GLaDOS put her hand on her forehead like she had a headache. "I wish you two weren't as monstrously stubborn as your mother," she said in an exhausted voice.

"We… Just wanted to help," Alex said quietly. The bots nodded in agreement. GLaDOS turned to glare at them.

Well, she was technically still in charge of them, and they were far too deep into this excuse for a facility for her to tell them to just get out.

"Just follow me as quickly as you can," she said briskly, setting off again at a quick pace that the kids occasionally had to run to keep up with. They would seriously slow her down, but she had to put up with it.

When they arrived at the entrance to the test subject holding section, she paused.

_They don't need to see this. They're still kids,_ interjected the file. GLaDOS turned back to them. Considering what was on the other side of this door, she decided she already had enough to deal with.

"Stay here," she ordered, wrenching the metal door open.

"What?" Glade protested, "But-"

"Blue, Orange, make sure they stay here," she calmly said. The bots, nodding, immediately grabbed each of the teenagers by the arm. She slipped past the door without letting them see inside.

When she arrived at her cell, she found that all of the guards had left. They probably thought they had weakened Chell enough that they didn't need them around her any more. A scientist knelt by the bottom bunk, calmly scribbling notes while she jerked with pain. He didn't notice when GLaDOS unlocked the door and stepped inside.

She gently tapped on his shoulder. He turned around and his expression of confusion turned to one of surprise and pain. Placing her hand on his shoulder, she revealed her optics to him, making him become even more terrified.

"No one hurts _my_ test subjects," she said calmly, stepping closer, "But _me_," she finished in a whisper. She pulled the blade out of his stomach and he collapsed. She then carefully removed the shock collar from Chell's neck.

When her companion's heart slowed and she had recovered enough, she helped her to her feet. Luckily, she was still strong enough to walk. For now.

She led her down the hall and out the door where the kids and the robots were waiting. The teenagers were at first delighted but then very concerned to see their mother's condition. Their mother, of course, was terrified by the thought that they were here at all. GLaDOS was quick to point out that she had nothing to do with their presence, glaring daggers at the testing robots, who shifted guiltily.

Then she remembered a promise she made. After sending the robots instructions on the fastest way out of the facility, she set off in a different direction.

It wasn't hard to find him. After Black Mesa started stealing Aperture technology, every piece of Aperture equipment, from the cubes to GLaDOS herself, were outfitted with tiny radio transmitters that gave off a distinct signal. It was so small that if a normal computer picked it up, it would cause an insignificant blip that could be passed off as anything. However, Aperture had computers specifically designed to pick up and track down these signals. All she had to do was follow his signal.

Wheatley was stuck on a crack in his rail when she came up to him.

"I told you I'd get you," GLaDOS said calmly, startling him.

"Of course, I, er, didn't doubt you at all about that," he replied nervously.

"Alright then. You either disengage yourself or I rip you off," she said.

"Oh, there's-there's no need for any ripping," he hastily pointed out, "Just get ready to catch me on the count of-"

"Just fall off."

With a clang, the core fell to the ground. She carelessly picked him up and ran off to meet the others.

To her relief, she found them a little ways into the wheat field outside of the door she told them to leave out of.

"The guards chased us out of the building," Glade explained when she walked up to them, "But then they just turned around and walked away…"

She tossed Wheatley to Alex, who barely caught him. "Oh, hi!" the core immediately chattered, rotating around to look at the boy, "You must be _her_ son! I'm Wheatley! I met your sister and, well…" the core suddenly looked away from him guiltily as Alex examined him with amusement.

"Now that I think about it, I was never pursued when I left to fetch _him_," GLaDOS replied to Glade.

She narrowed her optics and looked back toward the facility. _Why aren't they giving chase?_

Of course, she already had a hunch. She looked down at her former test subject, her hand hovering over her.

"What… What now?" Glade panted, sitting down on the ground next to her brother.

"Here," GLaDOS suddenly said, gripping Chell's arm, "That's why they're not chasing us. They implanted a tracker. I'm _not_ letting it anywhere near my facility."

"Then… What are you going to do?" Alex asked shakily, "We can't just leave her…"

"Of course not," she replied, sounding calmer than she felt, "I'll have to cut it out."

There came a collective "What?" and shocked beeps from the group.

Sighing, she pulled Chell off the ground and led them further into the wheat field until they were more hidden and set her down again. Her eyes were open, even though she was barely conscious, but she seemed to understand.

"Take the children back to the facility," GLaDOS ordered, "And _don't_ let them look back."

The bots, chirping, gently grabbed their hands and led them away,

"Unlike Black Mesa, I would prefer to do this in a sanitized environment," she said, trying to sound reassuring for once and extending her knife, "But we're close to the facility. Once we get there, I can treat any infection or whatever else you might have."

Chell nodded. The cold blade touched her arm.

"Just try to relax. This _will_ hurt."

**A/N: Oh, man, that chapter was stubborn to write. On the plus side, I got to write GLaDOS as both nice **_**and**_** cruel! Woo! She's kind of bipolar, isn't she?**

**And I was planning for the scorpion to have a bigger role, but then I thought of something better… *****sigh*****. I'll think of something. For some reason, I want him to be adorable…**


	7. Chapter 7

_Pain. It rolled over her in waves, consuming her. In this semi-unconscious state, the pain seemed normal, almost comforting. Chell knew this state well. She would always retreat to it whenever Black Mesa tried to force answers out of her. While they yelled and screamed, she would float here, wrapped in this cocoon of pain, like a corrupted sleep. It normally lasted hours, but GLaDOS wouldn't let her stay for long._

_She was shaken into full consciousness, and the rolling pain became _real pain, stabbing into a single area, racing up and down her arm. Sleep beckoned for her to return to it, and as much as she wanted to obey, she was being pulled to her feet. She was awake now, but couldn't stay standing, let alone run. If she was ready to collapse as soon as she escaped into the wheat field, she was ready to completely black out now. Realizing this, GLaDOS set her back down, only to readjust her grip and completely pick her up. She could feel the android start to run, steadily increasing speed. She must have slipped away, since the next thing she knew, she was lying down on the cold metal floor of the shack as it descended.

….

Chell jerked awake, as if escaping a nightmare she couldn't remember. She immediately felt something was wrong. She was lying on a hospital-like bed, surrounded by machines. Her heart began to pound. She realized she wasn't restrained, oddly enough. Perhaps some idiot forgot to administer enough sedative. Whatever happened, she knew she had to get out of there before they came to torment her again. She sat up and struggled to through the blanket off her.

"Calm down!" ordered a familiar voice. Chell froze. "For once, this facility isn't geared to hurt you."

She lay back again, trying unsuccessfully to force herself to relax. She knew where she was; she knew what happened. She should feel safe now.

"Hmm. I'm sure you understand what's going on, and yet your breathing and heart rate is still irregular," GLaDOS commented as if they were discussing the weather.

A TV monitor descended into the room on the wall opposite of the bed, showing an image of the AI herself. Chell calmed down a bit.

"Do you know what Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is?" the AI asked calmly. She nodded. "I thought so. Then you won't be surprised when I tell you that you've more than likely have a _very_ serious case of it."

A mechanical arm extended toward her, and even though she could clearly see that it only held a damp cloth and not a syringe, she was still suspicious that it did, somehow, and tried to scoot away from it. Besides, even if it was just a damp cloth, who says that it's damp with water?

"Don't you struggle, now…" GLaDOS said softly.

The arm continued to slowly approach her. Chell turned her face away from it and sealed her eyes shut, telling herself over and over that it was only a damp cloth. There was no syringe, no knife, and no taser. Just a cloth.

In the end, the cloth was a relief against her burning skin as it gently touched her cheek. Slowly, she was allowed to relax.

"See? This is what I mean by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder," GLaDOS said calmly. "Anything that reminds you of… what happened last week could cause a panic attack. Even a damp cloth set you on edge, didn't it? Who knows how long it will take to fix this. At least the physical damage has already been healed."

Confused, Chell pulled her arm out from under the blanket. What was once stripped with angry red, infected cuts now only had a few pale, thin lines. In fact, every scar she had received from Black Mesa was nearly gone, as well as the constant nausea and aches from the various chemicals that had been pumped into her. Chell sat up and gave her a questioning look.

"I know you have questions, but so we don't have to play a game of charades, let's see if I can go ahead and answer them," the AI said. Chell rolled her eyes. GLaDOS has always been able to read her lips and they have never had to play charades. "Question one. 'What happened since the time in the wheat field?' Well, after I was done removing the tracker, you were nearly unconscious, so I carried you here. Knowing you'd panic even more if you woke up to a bunch of medical devices, I kept you sedated for a few days until you were completely healed. Next question. 'Where are my offspring who inherited their lunacy from me?' They're both fine. I'll let them see you tomorrow, if you're not going to panic and try to strangle them. Question three. 'How can I repay you for your heroic rescue?' Weeeeell," Chell stiffened. "I would normally request repayment, but considering the fact that you managed to survive in that h**lish excuse for a science facility, and your condition, I'll let this slide." She wasn't entirely convinced the AI was telling the truth about this. "Last question. 'How are _you_ recovering from your ordeal at Black Mesa?' Why, I'm doing quite well, _thank you_ for asking," the AI finished, nodding slightly to herself. Chell rolled her eyes again and laid back.

"Well. Since you seem to be satisfied with those answers, I'll leave you be for the rest of the night," GLaDOS said, "Know that I'll be here to hold you down in the event of a nightmare. Sleep well." With that, the monitor turned off.

The rest of the night passed in a nightmarish blur. Not long after she would fall asleep, the nightmares would hit, and GLaDOS would wake her. Then, it would take hours for her to fall back asleep, but then the nightmares would strike again, and the cycle continued until morning came and Chell gave up on sleep.

"You're very lucky _I_ don't require sleep," GLaDOS stated, "Do you know how many times I was interrupted last night to keep you from killing yourself? I doubt you even remember half of them. Anyway, your children are awake as well, if you want to see them." Chell brightened a bit, sitting up straighter. Perhaps this could make her feel better.

GLaDOS's POV:

GLaDOS first led Glade and Alex into her own chamber.

"Listen," she said, staring down at them, "I need to tell you that while you are with her you are to be _very_ careful about what you say. Among the things Black Mesa stole from us was research on human psychology. They know how to damage someone's mind, even hers. But, I'm not sure just how severe the trauma is. I don't want to invoke any reaction until I know what I'm up against." The teenagers nodded, suddenly looking very nervous and scared rather than eager to see their mother. Before either of them could ask, she answered, "Yes, I'll be able to fix her, but it'll take time. She'll be able to function normally, though she may never quite be the same." A door in the chamber opened. When they didn't move, the AI lowered herself to their height and softened her voice, "Just go. Seeing you two should help."

Nodding, the teenagers walked solemnly out the door. She turned her attention away from them, and checked the rest of her facility.

Oddly enough, they managed to get through the day without causing a panic attack in the former test subject, though she seemed to just get more and more uncomfortable. She could easily pretend everything was okay when Glade and Alex were around, but when they weren't, she would shift uncomfortably in the bed she was confined to. As evening approached, GLaDOS decided to let her take a walk to her chamber.

"You know, I can tell you don't like being in that medical room," she said matter-of-factly. Chell just fixed her with a steady, intense stare. The AI swayed, watching her closely. "You don't have to be there anymore. You can sleep someplace else from now on. How about an offline Extended Relaxation Vault? That's where your offspring have been sleeping." She received no reply other than a couple blinks. She let out an exasperated sigh. "Why can't you just answer me? I can read lips, you know. That's how we've talked before." Chell just shrugged. "I don't want to revert to the old times. Especially since you spent a lot of those old times trying to kill me. Besides, all you have to do is shake or nod your head to answer my question anyway. Why don't you just reply?"

After a moment of silence, Chell glanced away from her long enough to shake her head. There was another sigh.

"Why must you always make things so difficult?" GLaDOS asked, an edge to her voice. "Where else do you think you can stay? I can't make this place too human-friendly, you know. How would I ever get any testing done?"

The only response she received was a stare.

"Well, while you figure that out, I'll stop wasting time and get back to my facility."

Along one wall of the chamber, a group of large, blank monitors flickered to life, showing images of charts, security feeds, and blueprints, and the AI pretended to only focus on them while other hidden cameras watched her former test subject, who settled into a sitting position on the floor. Chell continued to give her that intense stare; eyeing her as her optic swayed from monitor to monitor as the images they showed constantly changed, never seeming to miss anything.

Hours passed in silence. GLaDOS began to doubt she would _ever_ get a response out of her. Eventually, though, Chell simply curled up on the floor and fell asleep. GLaDOS didn't want to have to put up with her nightmares for another night, particularly in her own chamber. Nonetheless, she ordered ATLAS and P-body to bring a mattress and a pillow to her chamber. The monitors flickered off and the lights dimmed. She usually watched such things in her head, anyway. She kept a close eye on the sleeping girl, though, waiting for her to tense up and thrash. So far, she remained still.

"This is going to be a long night," she said softly.

**A/N: Okay, that looks like a good stopping place, even though it's a short chapter. I have ideas on how to continue the story, since I obviously can't say "and they all lived happily ever after with Black Mesa never bothering them again", but what I have in mind doesn't seem to fit the context of this story. It is called "The Rescue", after all, and the rescue's done. If I finish this off with a whole new story, it would be a rather short one called something like "The War", and would just be the final standoff between Aperture and BM. This really wasn't meant to be a trilogy, though, and the last story would be pretty short, I'm thinking about 3 chapters, 5 at the most. I just think it wouldn't fit the general theme of this one. Besides, leaving this as the last chapter wouldn't leave it looming over my head as a fic I need to finish before starting a new one.**

**For those of you who have been up in arms about the Space Core being forgotten-he will turn up again. Whether he's in one piece or several is not for me to spoil yet. (Evil laugh)**

**Speaking of new fics, those of you who read Average Life may remember a time when I very rudely began a chapter with a sneak peak at a new fic I was thinking about and left it at that for a few days before actually posting the real chapter. I got some good feed back on that idea, but I'm sorry to say that that particular fanfic will probably never be posted, due to lack of actual plot ideas, but those OC's will be recycled for a different story, information on which can be found at my profile. Wow, that was a really long author's note. Well, that was a general rundown on the future of this series and my activity on FFN. That's all I have to say, look forward to new updates and releases, have a good day!**


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